The Elite
by hashtagxheel
Summary: Ted and Maryse are the newest couple in L.A.'s most exclusive neighborhood. They waste no time making friends with the in-crowd. But what happens when they realize that ALL of their new friends are suspects in their neighbors' murders?
1. Sins & Secrets

**A/N: I've been gone for a while...consider this my comeback fic(: This one is, however, going in the same direction as all my previous ones: nonstop drama. The first chapter of The Elite is, as the title states, an introduction/prologue to some of the events.**

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><strong>Chapter One—The Introduction: Sins & Secrets

Adam undid his tie and ripped off his suit jacket. The usually calm and collected Canadian anxiously ran his fingers through his long blonde hair. "I'm beyond glad that today is over."

John sighed. He gazed over the immense expanse of grass that was his backyard. "Today definitely hasn't been the worst day of all this," he replied, lighting a cigarette, "I'm glad the whole ordeal is over."

Adam smirked. "I didn't know you smoked."

John took a long drag and slightly smiled. "I don't."

"So it's done?" Dave asked, "They're just gonna let us all go? I don't believe it."

"Well, believe it," said Paul, "it's not like there's anything not to believe. I mean, they let us go! Why are you so suspicious?"

"I don't trust lawyers," Dave said.

Paul laughed. "Asshole."

"Stop being such a buzzkill, Dave," said Randy, cracking open a can of MGD, "we're free; we should be celebrating!"

"I wouldn't go that far," said Paul, his voice solemn, "we might have our freedom, but that doesn't change anything that happened. Jay and Trish are still dead. We're still without two of our best friends."

"According to the lawyers, all of us—and the girls—had a reason to want them dead," said Adam, sitting in a lawn chair.

John shook his head. "And the sad thing is that they're right."


	2. The New Kids on the Block

Chapter Two—The New Kids on the Block  
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"I think that's the last box," Ted DiBiase said hopefully. He dropped a cardboard box on the floor of the foyer of his new home. The sandy-haired young man leaned his exhausted body against the wall in the foyer. He turned to his fiancee. "That _is_ the last one, right?"

His fiancee, Maryse Ouellet, peered out of the formal living room's large window and spotted Ted's dad, Ted, Sr., bringing the last two boxes from the U-Haul truck. The beautiful platinum blonde smiled. "We're all done."

Ted, Sr. pushed through the huge double doors and set the two boxes next to the one Ted had put down. He gazed in wonder at the mansion that now belonged to his son and future daughter-in-law. He smiled. "How's it feel to own a house in The Palisades?"

Ted smiled and shrugged. "I thought it'd be a whole hell of a lot longer before I got here, that's for sure." Ted thought that with good reason. It was common sense that no couple as young as he and Maryse had the money to live in a place like The Palisades. It took money—and shit loads of it—to live in a place like this. The Palisades was by far the most exclusive neighborhood in L.A. If you had a house here, it pretty much meant you had made it. That's why Ted, heir apparent to his dad's million-dollar real estate empire, felt like this was exactly what he'd been waiting for: a purchase that screamed "expensive as hell" that he'd paid for all on his own.

Maryse had been more instrumental in picking the house itself, which Ted was okay with. Yeah, he had expensive taste as far as décor went, but he couldn't bear to go into all those details. So, when he told his soon-to-be wife he had his eye on a home in The Palisades, he'd pretty much let her choose it. It hadn't taken the French Canadian beauty long to decide: a three-story beast of a home at 10890 Lakeview Drive with columns adorning the massive front veranda that gave way to their double doors. Not that Ted had ever doubted Maryse's choice in houses, but even he was shocked at how stunning their new home was.

The elder DiBiase laid a hand on his son's shoulder and smiled. "Have fun getting settled in. I'm gonna hit the road."

"Why so soon?" Ted asked.

"Rush hour traffic is a nightmare," his father replied, "the 101 is gonna be a mess."

Ted winced. L.A. traffic was infamous for being the worst. "Good point."

Ted, Sr. hugged his son. "I'll be back in a few days once I get back from my meeting in Denver to see what the lovely Maryse will have done with the place by then."

"Sounds good," said Ted, hugging his father.

Once his dad had left, Ted went upstairs to join Maryse, who was getting dressed…well, re-dressed.

Ted walked into the cavernous bathroom of him and Maryse's bedroom. His fiancee was in the mirror—one of her many mirrors—dressed in her favorite Stella McCartney jeans, a flowy navy blue top and four-inch black Jimmy Choo heels. She applied make-up to her flawless face with a practiced hand.

Ted grinned. "All this for me?" he asked, standing behind Maryse with his arms around her waist.

Maryse smiled at her and Ted's reflections in the mirror. "Of course not, silly," she replied, "it's for the neighbors."

Ted raised an eyebrow. "What for?"

"Oh, come on," replied Maryse, "you know image is everything in a place like this! I've gotta be on my A-game. How much do you wanna bet that the other wives—or fiancées, girlfriends, mistresses, whatever—around here are smokin' hot?"

"I wouldn't bet a damn thing," said Ted, "'cause I bet none of them can hold a candle to you."

Maryse turned to face Ted and kissed him. She laughed. "You just want some, don't you?" she asked.

"Oh, yeah," Ted replied, "how about we have our own house-warming party?" He gave Maryse a mischievous smile.

"Alright, I'll make you a deal," said Maryse, "you help me make a good first impression with the neighbors, whoever they are, and I'll blow your mind when we get back. Deal?"

"Deal," replied Ted, "but I do have one question."

"What?" Maryse asked.

"Is my mind the only thing you're gonna blow?"

**A/N: So how was it? Yeah, yeah, I know what you might be thinking: where's everyone else? Relax, I've gotta build up to that. All in due time(: Reviews would most definitely be appreciated. **


	3. Meet the Neighbors, Part I

Chapter Three—Meet the Neighbors, Part I

At Maryse's urging, Ted had changed from his moving clothes into dark-colored jeans and a pale blue Lacoste polo. The two of them were descending the spiral staircase just as the doorbell rang. Maryse opened the door and two women were standing on the porch.

The slightly shorter of the two extended her hand first. She was wearing a form-fitting charcoal-colored dress and black heels. She was obviously Latina and had emerald eyes, tanned skin, and oodles of curly brown hair.

"Hi, you guys must be the new neighbors," she said, "I'm Eve Torres. I live two houses down."

Ted shook the lovely woman's hand. "Pleasure to meet you," he said, "I'm Ted DiBiase and this is my fiancee, Maryse."

The other woman looked at Ted thoughtfully for a moment and then her face lit up. "You mean Ted DiBiase, Jr.?" she asked, "Doesn't your dad own half of L.A.?"

Ted laughed. "Guilty as charged."

"Oh, how rude of me! I'm practically interrogating you guys and I haven't even introduced myself," said the woman. She had long, wavy dark brown hair and bright blue eyes. She was wearing a silky red blouse tucked into a tight black pencil skirt and red patent leather pumps. She held out her hand to Ted and Maryse. "I'm Stephanie Levesque."

Ted shook her hand. "Pleasure to meet you."

"I know you guys just moved in and everything," began Eve, "but we'd love to invite you guys over to my house so you can get to know some of the neighbors. Are you up to that?"

Maryse's face lit up. "Of course!" She turned to Ted for confirmation.

Ted shrugged. To be honest, he wasn't in the mood to meet his new neighbors yet. He wanted to tell Maryse he was tired as hell, and the only thing he wanted to use his energy for was the mind-blowing sex he'd just been promised. Of course though, not wanting to disappoint her, Ted caved in with a response of "Sure, why not? It's never too early to make friends."

It was almost sunset when they began the short walk to Eve's house. While they walked, Ted fell behind and let Maryse chat it up with Eve and Stephanie. The way they were gabbing away, Ted would've thought they were best friends.

Eve's home was a stunning redbrick three-story with a fountain and long semi-circle driveway. There were a few cars parked there, and Ted wondered just how many neighbors Eve had been talking about.

Eve, playing hostess, led Maryse and Ted through a large tiled foyer and into a huge family room with a flat screen on the wall. There were a few other women in the room and they turned to face Ted, Maryse, Eve, and Stephanie when they entered the room.

Eve clapped her hands to get everyone's attention. "Everyone, this is Ted DiBiase and Maryse Ouellet," she announced, "They bought the house with the columns a few doors down."

Stephanie frowned. "The guys aren't back yet?"

Eve shrugged. "I'll give 'em ten minutes, tops. I think they went on another beer run."

"Sorry, Ted," Stephanie said apologetically, "our men aren't back yet. You'll be on your own for a while."

Ted smiled. It wasn't like he had a problem being in a room full of beautiful women. He was beginning to regret even _thinking_ he wouldn't want to come here. "It's fine," he said.

One woman stood up and made her way over to where Ted and Maryse were standing. She was on the short side with long, impeccably curled jet black hair and a curvaceous frame and wore a floor-length, expensive-looking blue print dress and dangly silver chandelier earrings. She gave Ted and Maryse an approving nod. "They look like they'll fit in, don't they?" she said to the other women.

Eve rolled her eyes. "That was pretty brash of you, Mel," she said, "care to introduce yourself while you're at it?"

The raven-haired woman smiled. "I'm just _kidding_!" she gushed. "I'm Melina Batista. I live across the street."

Still kind of shocked by how straight-forward Melina had been, Ted and Maryse laughed as they shook her hand. "Nice to meet you," said Maryse.

"You'll have to forgive our buddy Mel," piped up a Southern accent, "she's had one too many mojitos." The voice belonged to yet another lovely lady. She was on the short side, with long auburn hair and big brown eyes. She wore an off-the-shoulder turquoise top, super-tight Seven jeans, and gold stilettos. The gold bangles on her left wrist made clinked together as she held her hand out to Ted and Maryse.

"I'm Mickie Cena," the woman said with a smile, "I live next door to the alcoholic over here." She jerked a thumb at Melina and laughed.

"Mel is _not_ an alcoholic!" said a voice coming down the hallway, "There's a nicer word for it, I just can think of what it is."

Stephanie laughed. "Maryse, Ted, this is last member of our little group," she said, "this Candice Beckman."

Candice was about average height with long brown hair, dark eyes, and an inviting smile. She was by far the flashiest dresser, wearing a short, sparkly hot pink dress and silver heels.

"Nice to meet you," said Maryse. She appraised Candice's outfit. "Going somewhere special?"

Candice laughed. "Oh, this old thing?" she waved off Maryse's comment, "Thanks for the compliment, but I wear stuff like this most of the time. "

"You'll get used to it," shot Eve, "that bitch is _always_ trying to show the rest of us up."

Candice rolled her eyes as she walked into the kitchen. "Shut up and have another margarita," she said, bringing Eve a fluorescent pink glass.

"With pleasure," Eve replied. She turned to Ted and Maryse. "Please, have a seat! We should get to know each other a bit before the guys get here."

Exchanging a look, Ted and Maryse sat on the sofa between Mickie, Candice, and Melina and across from Eve and Stephanie.

"So, Ted," asked Melina, "what do you do for a living?"

"I'm in real estate," replied Ted, "I work for my dad right now. I hope to take over the family business soon."

"Wait till you hear what the family business is," muttered Stephanie.

"What is it?" Mickie asked.

Ted swallowed nervously. Oh, boy. He hated answering this question, because it always led to a million more. "DiBiase Enterprises," he eventually said.

Mickie's jaw dropped. "No way!" she said, "I knew you looked familiar! _You're_ Ted DiBiase, Jr.? Your family owns half of L.A.!"

"So I've been told," joked Ted. _By every goddamn person I come into contact with._

Candice smiled. "Maryse, you're a lucky girl, being engaged to the son of the unofficial mayor of L.A.."

"Oh, no," said Maryse, "you don't understand. I'm not with Ted for the money…"

Candice cut her off. She laughed. "Relax, honey," she said, "I know you're not. When you've lived in The Palisades for all of eight seconds, you see every type of gold digger and home wrecker there is. I know a real couple when I see one, and you two are the real fucking deal."

Ted smiled slightly. He wasn't sure what to do. On second thought, maybe the ladies' husbands _did_ need to get here. He needed to be around other guys, even if it meant they were total strangers. Wanting desperately to drop the topic of him and his father and his money, he changed the subject.

"What do all of you ladies do?" Ted asked.

"He's talking to those of us that actually work…sometimes," Mickie shot at Melina and Candice.

Melina rolled her eyes and took another sip of her mimosa. "Yeah, yeah, yeah."

"My husband and I are lawyers," said Stephanie, "we work in the firm my dad and grandpa founded, McMahon & Associates."

"You mean, Vince McMahon?" asked Ted.

Stephanie nodded. "That's him."

Ted's eyes widened. "He's the most amazing lawyer ever!" he said, "Didn't he get Chris Brown off the hook for beating Rihanna?"

Stephanie smiled. "Yeah, and he got Bruno Mars' drug charges dropped," she replied, "right now, he's focused on those two McCourt idiots fighting over the Dodgers. He's head of the husband's legal team."

"Well, Steph over here just blew us all to shit," joked Mickie, "but I'll keep going anyway. I grew up in Virginia on a horse ranch, and I've always had a thing for them. I work part-time as an equestrian trainer on a ranch in Norco. It's a little bit of a drive, so it's not an everyday thing."

"What about you, Eve?" Maryse asked.

"I just graduated from USC," Eve replied, "I got a degree in accounting, although I'm not sure when I'll use it. Right now, I'm a Laker Girl."

"You're a Laker Girl?" Ted asked.

Eve nodded. "The girls and their men come to the games all the time," she said, "next home game, you and Maryse are coming too!"

Ted smiled at the invitation. "Thanks—" he began, but was cut off by the echoing sound of a key turning in the large front double doors. Then the door opened and Ted could hear several male voices coming closer and closer.

Eve stood up. "Ted, it's time you meet the guys."

**A/N: So what do you think of the ladies? I think this chapter may have been a bit long...sorry:p You get to know the guys next chapter and then we get to the _really_ good stuff(: Review please !:D**


	4. Meet the Neighbors, Part II

Chapter Four—Meet the Neighbors, Part II  
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The first guy who entered the family room tucked his keys into his back pocket. He had longish blonde hair and tattoos. Ted could tell he was one of those Rockstar types who wore sunglasses indoors and a leather jacket despite the typical gorgeous L.A. weather. Ted could practically feel his eyes staring him up and down through his shades.

Eve smiled at the sight of the man and he smiled back. "Adam, baby," she said before sharing a kiss with the man.

The man smiled. "Your mouth tastes like margaritas."

Eve laughed. "Probably because Mel and Candi have been trying to get the rest of us drunk all afternoon." She took Adam's hand in hers. "Oh, I can't see how I almost forgot! Babe, this is Ted DiBiase and Maryse Ouellet; they just moved in. Guys, this is my fiancee, Adam Copeland."

Before Adam could even acknowledge Ted and Maryse even being there, another man into the living room. The man, a huge guy wearing a tight wife beater, jeans and Timberlands, removed his sunglasses and looked at Ted.

"Who's this?" the muscle man asked.

Adam shrugged. "New neighbor."

The big guy raised an eyebrow. "Some guy's in your house and you don't know who it is?"

Melina reached up—_way_ up—and placed a hand on the man's shoulder. "You just missed the introductions," she said, "Dave, this is Ted and Maryse. They live down the street now. Ted, Maryse, this is my husband, Dave."

Ted was in awe of how huge Dave was. He didn't want to greet him or anything, because he wasn't exactly sure what to say. What if he accidentally said the wrong thing? Dave could probably snap him in half.

Ted swallowed nervously and stood up. Dave still had a good three or four inches on him. He held his hand out. "Nice to meet you."

Dave appraised Ted before laughing to himself and slipping his sunglasses back on. Unsure of what kind of first impression he'd made on by far the biggest man he'd ever seen, Ted sat back down on the couch as another man rounded the corner. He had brown hair, blue eyes, and muscular arms that were on full display thanks to the Lakers jersey he wore. He leaned over the back of the couch to kiss Mickie hello. He made small talk with the ladies, Adam, and Dave before turning to Ted.

"New guy?" he asked.

Adam nodded. "_Very_ new."

"Well, don't be pricks guys," said the man, smiling, "introduce yourselves! Watch, and I'll show you antisocial motherfuckers how to do it."

"No worries there, John," snorted Dave, "we've already met the guy."

The guy made his way over to where Ted and Maryse were sitting and extended his hand. "I'm John," he said, "I'm married to that lovely little Southern belle over there. My wife tells me you guys bought the house a few doors down."

On the inside, Ted breathed a huge sigh of relief. John was definitely the nicest of the guys so far. He shook John's hand. "Yeah, we—" he began. Ted was cut off by the arrival of yet another man, a tall guy with brown hair, aqua blue eyes and his arms completely covered in tattoos. He wore a black Affliction shirt and jeans. The man placed a hand on John's shoulder.

"Where's the beer?" he asked, gesturing to John's empty hands.

"Outside," John replied.

The man rolled his eyes. "Man, I'm ready to get wasted _now_," he said, "why would you leave it outside?"

"'Cause Paul decided to pay for it," said John, "so Paul can haul it in here."

The man smirked. "Unbelievable."

Smiling, John turned to Ted and Maryse. "Guys, this is the idiot I call my best friend, Randy Orton," he said, "he's Candice's fiancee. Randy, meet Ted and Maryse. They're new around here."

"Oh," said Randy, "so you're the ones who bought the house with the columns? Let me just say, you've got good taste in houses."

Ted smiled at the compliment. "Thanks, but it's more like "Maryse's got good taste in houses"."

"Smart man," said Randy, "let her pick the house and you can't go wrong." Randy smiled and looked over his shoulder at the last man, a tall guy with a long dirty blonde ponytail wearing a black Motorhead concert t-shirt, jeans, and motorcycle boots. He carried a twenty-four pack of MGD under each arm.

"Thanks a lot for the help guys," he shot.

"That'll teach you to whip out your black card and "cover everything" when we're all trying to split the cost," said Adam, complete with finger quotes.

The man with the ponytail walked into the kitchen and dropped the cases on the island.

"Come on, dude!" said Adam, "You're gonna fuck up the granite!"

"That'll teach you to try to teach me _anything_," the man said with a grin.

Stephanie stood up and made her way into the kitchen. She playfully punched the man in his arm. "Be nice," she said, "we've got company." She gestured to Ted and Maryse.

The man quickly extended his hand. "Paul Levesque."

While he shook the man's hand, Ted was somewhat shocked. _This_ was Stephanie's husband? _This guy_ was a lawyer. Now he'd seen it all. "I'm Ted DiBiase," said Ted, "this is my fiancee, Maryse."

"Nice to meet you guys," replied Paul.

"Now that the introductions are over with," Melina called from the living room, "who's ready to get drunk?" She held a shot glass in the air triumphantly.

Ted couldn't help but laugh. He exchanged a pleased look with Maryse.

"You know what?" he asked.

"What?" asked Maryse.

"I think we're gonna like it around here."

**A/N: Now you're all acquainted with everyone. What do you think so far? It gets exciting soon, I promise. Thanks a million for the reviews and alerts on the first two chapters !Review please !:D**


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